Reviews

Mexico City, Mexico

Pepsi Center

May 11, 2012


[Oscar Montes], [Alberto Ortega Gurza]

Review by Oscar Montes



A really special day, today May 11th is my Bob show number 27th and also my 
birthday!  What a gift is to have Dylan in my country and front row center! Is there
something better than this?

At about 1:00 PM I went to the Mexico International Airport to pick up Sue Osborne 
and her non-Dylan fan friend Amanda Gardham (both from Ottawa, Canada). Thank 
you girls, all my birthday presents were fabulous! Sue obviously coming to the two 
Mexico City shows!

The Pepsi Center WTC is a brand new venue, Bob Dylan is the second act ever! 
Federica and Laurette as usual there! Excellent to see my Mexican huge Dylan fans 
and followers Alberto Ortega Gurza y Edgar Perez! Last shows we had enjoyed
together had been four years ago in Zacatecas.

Leopard-Skin, the current beginning of this tour was really solid and the audience
responded so well welcoming Bob to the largest city of the world. To Ramona with 
Dylan playing guitar was next, a nice performance. Things have changed with its 
country flavor make everybody happy. TUIB made all people be on fire, sublime piece!

A rather weak Rollin' and tumblin' was the following number, not the best version we 
have listened to but worth to mention because Bob was really smiling at Donnie . 
Desolation row was beautiful, the Mexican audience delighted to have this classic! 
The Cry a while, which is always a pleasure to receive it every night. Spirit in the water 
with Bob playing a little bit of harp was the following song.

A marvelous Summer days made everybody dance on their seats and then a great 
song from TOOM, Love sick was really nice. Highway 61, the best version delivered by 
Bob in Mexico so far, an explosion! Then the highlight of the night for my taste was 
Simple twist, I have to admit that some tears fell from my eyes, what a moving 
performance by Bob! Dylan played guitar so good in this one!

Thunder on the mountain, so strong once again especially at the end. Another 
highlight was Thin Man, hey Bobby what a way to play the harmonica and to entertain 
us! Incredible! Everybody was standing at the end of this song thanking Dylan. And all 
the people stood this during the following tune, Rolling stone which was and 
outstanding performance.

The best Watchtower so far was the following song, really solid and strong! Just after 
finishing this tune the miracle came: Bob said "Thank you friends" and immediately 
"Gracias amigos" Wow! First time I hear Dylan saying something in Spanish! Thank you
so much Bob!

Bob and his left the stage and return for an encore which was Blowin' in the wind, 
really loved by the audience! Awesome show, unforgettable one for sure! See you 
tomorrow guys in the last show of the season!

Oscar Montes
forever_young74@hotmail.com

[TOP]

Review by Alberto Ortega Gurza



On March 14th I found an ad on a local newspaper announcing the most expected 
news that thousands of Mexican Bobfans could possibly receive: five years away from 
his last visit, His Royal Bobness would be performing in the country again.

I quickly turned to the two most reliable worldwide sources on the upcoming tour 
dates: Boblinks.com and Bobdylan.com. But no, neither of them had the Mexican 
dates registered.

So I sent an email to Karl Erik Andersen, webmaster of Expectingrain.com:

“This morning there is an ad in the Mexico City major newspaper REFORMA
announcing an upcoming Bob Dylan Show at the Mexico City Pepsi Center WTC on 
May 11th”.

He then asked me to look for a link backing up the info, which I sent, and so, faster 
than the fall of a drop, he went on to post the info in his popular site. So this 
breaking of the news caused a boom in the social networks. The next day, on its 
version online, a major newspaper posted the article: “BOB DYLAN WILL BE IN 
MEXICO AND CAUSES A STIR IN TWITTER”.

As for me, I wrote a six page article for CARAS -a prestigious national magazine
under the title “LADIES AND GENTLEMEN: BOB DYLAN”, which was published in 
the May edition.

Yesterday I arrived early to the venue with my wife and little girl. Soon my friends
and huge Dylan followers Oscar Montes and Edgar “Dylan” Perez arrived; it was great 
to spend time together with them there. 

A couple of hours later my dad made his usual entrance looking so dandy and so 
fine, in his sharp cowboy attire. Nothing less could be said about my mother.
We were right behind Jimmy’s audio console.

“You can come and sit by the side of me,” said Jimmy friendlily to my daughter 
Teresita del Mar, as he handed her a cold bottled sports drink. All along the show 
she kept willing to accept the offer in order to live an experience she would never 
forget, but felt too shy, and stayed with her fired up daddy, who spent the full two
hours and forty eight minutes of the concert dancing jumping and singing his lungs
out.

As usual, the music was like new black polished chrome and came over the audience 
like liquid night.

In my opinion, the definitive highlights of the night were an staggering rendition of 
Cry a While, where the band performed an out-of-this-world tempo and rhythm 
changes, masterfully enhanced by Bob’s harp arrangements; a very powerful version 
of Ballad Of a Thin Man, and an intense and solid All Along the Watchtower.

Seeing an upbeat and smiley Bob, who kept constantly taking his hand to his heart
as if to say: “I’m overwhelmed to be here, sharing with you what I enjoy the most 
in life”, was a treat that’s very hard to top.

Alberto Ortega Gurza
alberto.ortega.gurza@gmail.com
Twitter @EleotOgrabart

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